The Korea Times: 'Are we prepared?'

In an article for the Korea Times, Dr. Choi Sang-ok, associate professor in the Department of Public Administration at Korea University compares disaster preparedness in the United States with that of Korea.

Touching upon topics such as weather-related disasters, early warnings or pollution-related disasters in connection with the reform of the emergency management systems, he advocates for emergency management agencies and functions to be centralized whilst at the same time advocating for a shared governance.

Dr Sang-ok states that the Korean government has made efforts to accentuate its role in emergency management, without equally supporting the activity of other players, such as voluntary organizations, business corporations and the local community. He calls for improvement in communication between all pertinent actors during disasters. He adds: "Another challenge to be overcome is the ongoing belief that planning is all that is required to prepare for disasters. Instead of writing emergency operations plans, we need to find ways to reduce vulnerability and enhance capabilities."